Critique 1- Wayne McGregor's piece Atomos

My first thoughts on Wayne McGregor’s piece Atomos were that it includes intriguing and unpredictable movement, as I expected since McGregor stated that he enjoys finding new ways to create choreography (CnnEnglishNews011, 2013). I couldn’t see a clear story line or message in the piece, however I feel as though it didn’t impact the way I felt about the performance since the movement filled me with curiosity and wonder. The movement used in this performance was very unique and abstract which I really enjoyed to watch as an audience member, it included many duets, solos and group sections which were really inspiring to watch. This was highlighted especially in the duet sections when you could clearly see the connection and bond between the dancers movement, in the sense of mimicking each other whilst being on different levels or in opposite directions. Many duets were incorporated throughout the piece and the majority of them had a feeling of manipulation or one performer was controlling the other’s pathways. In one particular sector of the performance there was a group piece which I noticed was slightly out of unison, however I think that was intentional as they were all doing the same movement yet they each added their own unique flare to the sequence. As for the soloists I felt as though they had a lot of control in their movement and they had a decisive and determined dynamic which was really empowering to watch, yet they also had a sense of freedom in their motion.(P//) Choreographic devices that I saw in McGregor’s Atomos were accumulation, repetition, motifs, levels and gesturers. The device that I picked up on the most was accumulation as some of the sequences began as solos and developed into duets; this had a powerful impact as it contributed to the unpredictable aspect I find in McGregor’s work. Levels were also an entertaining choreographic device because in the duets they used a lot of mimicking movements but they used levels to create a different shape for the partnership. I found this really eye catching as McGregor made two movements that may be completely different have a connection and link to each other.(P//) Some of the aspects that stood out to me in the performance were the lighting as it changed a numerous amount of times; it was mainly a dark light with small tints of colour such as red, blue or green. In some sections there were projected backgrounds on the wall behind the dancers or even on the floor. The projected images/patterns were mainly pixels in the colours blue, red and beige, I felt that it didn’t distract my interest from the dancers and it was a simple background which assisted the performance. (P//) In my opinion the music was perfect for this performance as it was simple classical music for most of the piece and it had some added in sound effects which fitted well with the movement. However the movement didn’t always follow the music which I actually enjoyed as it adds to the unpredictability of McGregor’s choreography. An example of this was when a dancer performed a powerful jump when the music was consistent and there were no sudden changes to it.(P//) I also observed that the dancers were wearing tight clothing; such as leotards, sport bras and shorts, this allowed you to see the dancer’s body move in an anatomical way. I felt as though this was a sensible choice for costume as, if the costume was larger and had more decoration it may have obstructed the dancers to move the way they did. In Conclusion, I enjoyed Wayne McGregor’s piece Atomos as the movement created gave me a sense of unexpected and curiosity because I was excited to see what movement would come next. Here below is the link to Wayne McGregor's piece Atomos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=di1H8IJtkxY (McGregor, 2019) Refrences: McGregor, W., 2019. Wayne McGregor: Atomos. [video] Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021]. CnnEnglishNews 011 2013. Wayne McGregor goes atomic in Atomos- video interview. [video] Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021]. Bibliography: McGregor, W., 2019. Wayne McGregor: Atomos. [video] Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021]. CnnEnglishNews 011 2013. Wayne McGregor goes atomic in Atomos- video interview. [video] Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021].